On 18 February, 1853, the Emperor survived an
assassination attempt by Hungarian nationalist
János Libényi. The emperor was taking a stroll with one of his officers,
Maximilian Karl Lamoral Graf O'Donnell von Tyrconnell, on a city-
bastion, when Libényi approached him. He immediately struck the emperor from behind with a knife straight at the neck. Franz Joseph almost always wore a uniform, which had a high collar that almost completely enclosed the neck. It so happened that the collar of his uniform was made out of very sturdy material. Even though the Emperor was wounded and bleeding, the collar saved his life.